Precautions to Eliminate Risks of Using App-Driven Taxi Services

After the arrival of Uber-like taxi services in the industry, taxi-hailing becomes easier. For every action, there is always an equal and opposite reaction. In relation to the crime spree in the industry, safety concerns have arisen among the taxi users (particularly women). Especially when using the ride-sharing option, the female passengers have to be very cautious.

Taxi service providers have initiated several precautionary measures like adding panic button, notifying beloved ones while taking a ride alone, appointing drivers after thorough background verifications, etc. Yet, we are witnessing horrifying incidents here and there more often. In such cases, who is to blame? Whether the incongruous drivers, insecure taxi services/applications, or the failing justice system of the country.

While obeying the guidelines designed for female passengers to safeguard themselves during their taxi travel, you have to consider the following precautionary measures to avoid such displeasing incidents. When you get into a cab:

1. Turn on the location services or GPS locator in your smartphone; make sure that you have enough credit to make calls and the phone is fully charged (that has helped police in certain cases to track the victims),
2. Don’t sit in the front seat which is next to the driver if you don’t feel comfortable with the driver behaviour,
3. Sit in the back seat which is diagonally opposite to the driver seat so that you can find some space to escape out of the car if something goes wrong,
4. Share the cab and driver details with at least four members in your contact list. So that they track your movement and contact you when there is an emergency,
5. Never get into a cab which details do not match with the one you received from the service provider, and
6. Make use of “Panic Button” in the taxi-booking application to alert the local police who can help you out immediately (even the Uber-clone apps like Tagmytaxi providing applications with such safety modules).

Relying on technology is the most welcoming idea to get things done easily. However, it is up to you to be vigilant enough to safeguard yourself from some social evils and stay safe, especially while using technology-based taxi services as we are witnessing a lot of happenings across the world. So, proceed with caution!